1. Field of invention
This invention relates to the cultivation of seaweed and shellfish for the creation and exploitation of aquatic habitats.
2. Discussion of Prior Art
The creation of new aquatic habitats to compensate for man-caused losses of natural habitats is in great demand. The plantation of kelp forests and shellfish reefs have been proposed to replace fish shelter, food, and spawning grounds which are depleted. Also, the aquacultural exploitation of these man-made habitats has been proposed in order to make their construction profitable for the private investor. In my patent U.S. Pat. No. 4,872,782 of Oct. 10, 1989 and in my patent U.S. Pat. No. 5,884,585 of Mar. 23, 1999 I proposed artificial substrates for the construction of mussel habitats, and in patent application Ser. No. 09/206/276 now U.S. Pat. No. 6,656,476 filed on Jun. 23d, 1998 I proposed artificial substrates for the plantation of kelp forests. Also, some aqualculturists cultivate shellfish in mesh bags placed on intertidal racks to prevent predation from bottom organisms.
Nevertheless, I recognized the difficulty to cultivate in the same marine habitat kelp and mussels together. Mussels colonize kelp substrates and kelp colonizes mussel substrates. However, I wanted to create an habitat with both mussels and kelp, because in the California sea these two remarkable marine organisms are complementary, and cultivated in symbiosis have a synergic effect resulting in greater diversity and production of marine species. Mussels and kelp can live well together as long as substrates are available for both species. Mussels and kelp do not compete in the food chain. Phytoplankton feeds mussels which feed carnivorous fish. Dissolved nutrients feed kelp which feeds herbivorous fish. Mussels and kelp compete only for their fixation on solid substrates which often are rare. The Prior Art did not solve the problem of shellfish and seaweed competing with each other for limited substrates, and as a result limiting the diversity and productivity of marine habitats.